Ryan Day Still Believes Ohio State Buckeyes Running Game Can Be Fixed

Ryan Day still believes in the Ohio State Buckeyes' running game, but is TreVeyon Henderson's return enough to kick-start it?

Seven weeks into the season and Ohio State is still looking for solutions to fixing the run game. 

The No. 3 Buckeyes have talent. Countless names that should be able to move the sticks and keep drives potent. Outside of a Week 7 road win over Purdue, the ground-and-pound attack has been putrid at best. 

“I wish I could point to one thing, but it was a combination again, which isn’t good enough,” Buckeyes coach Ryan Day said. "(Penn State) is very good against the run, don’t get me wrong. But there were times when there was something that wasn’t fit up front properly or it was the running back maybe not hitting the hole correctly.”

There's no one solution to the concern that grows in Columbus. Injuries to Treyveon Henderson and Myian Williams have forced the Buckeyes to expand the roles of players like Chip Trayanum and Dallen Hayden. That, or the offense has gone one-dimensional, nothing seems to be picking up steam. 

Saturday's road trip to Camp Randall Stadium to take on Wisconsin should be a testing point for the Buckeyes (7-0, 4-0 Big Ten) in seeing what can be corrected. And yes, another sluggish outing against an average run defense should have cause for concern. 

Ohio State Buckeyes running back Chip Trayanum (No.10) runs past a Penn State defender at Ohio Stadium in Columbus.  / USA Today Sports

“Yeah, I do (think we can improve),” Day said. “It’s a valid question. I think there have been signs of that. We’re going to keep pushing. Getting a couple of guys back could help as well, help us become more explosive. So we keep pushing. We believe we can do it and I know we can.”

Currently, the Buckeyes rank 101st nationally in rushing yards per game (127) and 95th in yards per carry (3.8). Henderson and Hayden are averaging over 6.0 yards per carry. Williams and Trayanum are averaging less than 4.5 yards per snap, but the duo has combined for six of Ohio State's 13 rushing scores. 

With Henderson out against the Nittany Lions, Ohio State averaged 1.9 yards per play. Against Maryland in Week 5, the Buckeyes averaged less than two yards per carry and found the end zone on a 4-yard carry from Trayanum. 

Day is hopeful Henderson will return this week after being inactive since the Buckeyes' win over Notre Dame. Henderson's top-notch speed in the open field could be a difference-maker down the stretch for Ohio State. 

In the 17-14 win over the Irish, Henderson turned on the jets with a 61-yard touchdown in the second quarter. 

“We hope he makes a big impact,” Day said of Henderson. “We know that he can hit home runs. He did that in the Notre Dame game and that was a big difference. We have confidence in all of our running backs but he does allow us the opportunity to hit a home run and be explosive.”

The Buckeyes and Badgers kick off at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday.